The U.S. men’s national soccer team, under new coach Mauricio Pochettino, is set to face arch-rival Mexico on Tuesday night in Zapopan, Mexico, marking the team’s first friendly in Mexico since 2012. The match will take place at Estadio Akron, home of Liga MX’s Chivas de Guadalajara.
Pochettino’s tenure began positively with a 2-0 victory over Panama in Austin, Texas, on Saturday, with goals from Yunus Musah and Ricardo Pepi. However, Pepi will miss the match against Mexico, as will star player Christian Pulisic and key player Weston McKennie due to their respective absences.
During the match against Mexico, the U.S. found itself 1-0 down at halftime after Raul Jimenez’s powerful free-kick goal in the 22nd minute. The U.S. struggled, failing to register a shot on goal and being outplayed significantly. In the second half, Pochettino made substitutions in an attempt to spark his side, bringing on Kristoffer Lund for Antonee Robinson and Alex Zendejas for Yunus Musah.
Mexico doubled their lead just after halftime, capitalizing on a mistake from Tim Ream, allowing Cesar Huerta to score in the 49th minute. Aidan Morris received a yellow card in the 34th minute for a foul, further complicating the U.S.’s situation.
Notably, the match served as a farewell for Mexican legend Andres Guardado, who was substituted in the 19th minute to a warm round of applause, concluding his international career having made a record 182 appearances for Mexico.
In terms of the lineup, Pochettino made minimal changes from the previous match against Panama due to the absence of several key players. Matt Turner started as goalkeeper, supported by a defensive line of Joe Scally, Miles Robinson, Tim Ream, and Kristoffer Lund. Midfield was occupied by Brenden Aaronson, Aidan Morris, Gianluca Busio, and Malik Tillman, while Josh Sargent took up the forward position.
The game will be broadcast on TNT with pregame coverage starting at 9:30 p.m. ET, and will also be available in Spanish on TUDN and Univision, as well as streaming live on Max and Peacock.